


A matter of Bonds

by Mizu_Sakura



Category: Senki Zesshou Symphogear
Genre: Alternate Universe, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Swearing, tags and characters added as they appear
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-28
Updated: 2018-11-22
Packaged: 2019-04-06 19:59:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14064450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mizu_Sakura/pseuds/Mizu_Sakura
Summary: Saint-Germain had never expected to encounter a descendent after so many long years. And she certainly did -not- expect said descendant to be a former foe!





	1. Chapter 1

**1: Distant Relations**

Early on in her her life as an alchemist, Saint-Germain had kept silent watch over her descendants, occasionally getting secretly involved in their affairs in the hope that they would have a better life than her, a former slave. But as she became more involved in her work to free humanity from the curse of Baalal, she had lost track of them. A couple of centuries passed and she figured she'd never discoverer any descendants again, so she was quite surprised when she did...especially since said descendant was a former foe! Or, to be more specific, one Yukine Chris.

"Sooo...you’re like my great great great great great..."

"Yukine, kindly stop."

"...Great great grandma?" The Ichival user studied her briefly, a skeptical look on her face. "That sounds so damn bizarre, since you don’t even look like you’re even thirty yet! I mean, frickin’ immortal alchemist and all that crap, but still! Should I call you grandma?!" 

Saint-Germain massaged her temples, frowning. _This child is going to give me a headache, honestly…_ "If you must call me something, how about sister? Or perhaps aunt. But certainly not ‘grandma'! And I’m not immortal anymore, if you recall."

"Whatever. So we're supposedly related, now what?"

Now what, indeed. Saint-Germain hadn't really intended for Yukine to find out about the whole relations thing, but S.O.N.G.'s commander (and Yukine's appointed guardian) Kazanari Genjuuro had insisted on informing her. If it wasn't for the fact that he had helped her look into Yukine's ancestry on what amounted to a mere whim, she wouldn't have told him! But what's done is done, and there was nothing she could do about it now.

"If I might make a suggestion, ladies?" The commander strode into the room, closely followed by Prelati and the Zababa duo. "As you know by now, we've run into a few snags finding suitable accomidations for our newest allies. Therefore...Chris-kun, Saint-Germain-kun will live with you for the time being!"

"Wh... **WHAT THE HELL, OLD MAN?!"**

"Calm down, Chris-kun, it's for the best. It'll give you two an opportunity to get to know each other better, seeing how you're family!"

Saint-Germain couldn't help but notice the shocked looks the Zababa duo exchanged, nor the fact that Prelati was mumbling something under her breath in italian. It was too faint to make out, but she suspected it was something rather rude directed at Cagliostro. Speaking of..."What of my companions?"

"Maria-kun has agreed to let Cagliostro-kun stay with her. As for Prelati-kun here..." He gave her a hearty slap on the back, nearly knocking the poor girl over in the process. "She'll be staying with Kirika-kun and Shirabe-kun!"

_What?! But didn't they..._ "Are you alright with that, Prelati?"

"It's fine." Prelati directed a scowl at the commander, gingerly rubbing her now sore back. "I mean, we're not trying to kill each other anymore and besides, I'll be helping out here most of the time, basically."

**"NOW, THEN!"** The commander boomed out, causing everyone in the room to jump. "Since that's settled, I'll leave you all to getting your things ready! I'm counting on you all to get along!

_Get along, right..._ Saint-Germain watched as Yukine glared daggers at the commander's back before turning and giving her an uneasy look.

_-Can- we get along when she looks like she can't even trust me?_


	2. Chapter 2

**2: Room for one more**

_Spacious._

That was her first impression upon entering Yukine's apartment. Why a lone high school girl needed so much space eluded her, but at least it meant there was ample enough room to accommodate another person, although hopefully it wouldn't be necessary for a prolonged period of time. It wasn't like she had issues staying with her per se, but the idea of imposing upon anyone, especially someone she barely knew, bothered her. And besides, Yukine seemed... annoyed... to have another resident within her home. At least that was the impression St. Germain got.

"Oi. Just, uh...just set your stuff over by the couch for now, I'll, um... I'll be back in a bit." Yukine quickly backed away into the lone bedroom, slamming the door shut behind her. St. Germain heard a lock clicking into place, effectively separating the two women.

Placing her meager belongings where Yukine had indicated, she sat down heavily on to the plush couch, a weary sigh escaping her lips. How in the world was she supposed to interact with someone who seemed to be so wary of her? Someone with who she seemingly had nothing in common with aside from being orphaned at an early age?

Lost in her thoughts, St. Germain barely noticed the small cellphone she had been given buzzing furiously in her pants pocket. Removing it, she quickly swiped at the screen and held it near her ear.

"St. Germain speaki-"

_"So-so-so-so! I just heard! You and that little cutie-pie_ -are- _related? And you're staying together now?!"_

She could feel the unbridled energy and sheer excitement through the phone. "Cagliostro. Yes, that is correct, surprisingly enough."

_"Woo-hoo! That's awesome! So, how's it going, any heart-to-heart convos yet~? Tell me, tell me!"_

"What? Cagliostro, I've been at Yukine's apartment scarely an hour as of yet!"

_"Aww, darn! Too soon for any details, eh?"_

"Entirely too soon." She winced at a sudden thump and muffled swearing emnating from the bedroom. "Speaking of living accommodations, I understand that you'll be staying with...Maria, was it? How is that going?"

_"Great! ...Well, actually, we haven't even left for her place yet. We just got done with a sparring match and-OH! I discovered the cutest thing~ It seems Maria has the biggest crush on that swordswoman and-"_

_"Her name is Tsubasa and I **DO NOT** have a crush on her!"_ an irate voice yelled from the background.

_"Oopsies, she heard me!"_ Cagliostro's voice dropped to a conspirital whisper. _"But she's denying it, how precious~ She really needs to be more honest with her feelings, though. Anyways! I have to go now, keep me updated on how things go with you two, mmkay? Ti amo! MWAH!" *click*_

St. Germain stared down at the now-silent phone, feeling some pity for Maria. Cagliostro could admittedly be a bit...much...for others to handle, what with her overly enthusiastic (and oftentimes flirty) personality coupled with seemingly boundless energy. _I certainly hope she doesn't completely infuriate Maria..._ She was jarred from her thoughts by yet another loud thump coming from the bedroom. _What in the world is Yukine doing? Perhaps I should check and make sure she's alright..._

-meanwhile, in the bedroom-

Chris dug furiously through her closet, yanking out various articles of clothing and tossing them onto the bed, all in an attempt to make some room for her 'guest's' sparse wardrobe. Unfortunately, crammed as her closet was, she barely made a dent. Inwardly she screamed, completely aggravated by the short notice from the old man. Yeah, sure, she had a relatively large apartment but it didn't have a spare bedroom, much less another bed!

_Seriously, where the hell is she supposed to keep her stuff, or even sleep for that matter?! Because I'm definitely not sharing my bed!_

Snarling, she gave the bed a swift kick (which she immediately regretted.) Hopping up and down on one foot and swearing, she crashed into a nearby dresser before finally collapsing onto the bed.

"Why couldn't the old man take her in?! Wait..." She paused, a deep frown etched on her face. Chris honestly had no clue whatsoever if he had his own place or if he lived at S.O.N.G.'s headquarters. And actually, she wasn't too keen on the alchemist staying with him.

_Senpai...?_ No, she likely didn't have enough room at her decidedly unkempt apartment, and besides that bastard of a clan head would pitch a fit about a former enemy staying with her.

_The idiot and her wife?_ Chris shuddered at the thought. Nobody should have to be subjected to those two's lovey-dovey antics, nuh-uh!

That left the terror twins and Maria, but they were housing the other two alchemists. _Guess that really does leave just me, huh? Family or not..._ Chris proceeded to flail back-and-forth across the bed, not knowing what to do about her current situation. Yes, she was ticked off about the abrupt change in living arrangements. Yes, she was skeptical about the whole 'distant relations' thing. But a small part of her was curious about her supposed ancestor. Just a tiny bit. Possibly. Maybe.

"Aargh, fuck this so mu-ACK!"

**WHUMP!**

Not noticing how close to the bed's edge her flailing had brought her, Chris promptly toppled over and slammed into the floor face-first.

"OW! Son of a-"

_"Yukine? Pardon my asking, but is everything alright?"_

"Yeah, I'm fine, everything's fine!" she yelled back, wiping at a rather bloody nose. "Stuff's taking longer than I thought! Oi, if you're hungry there's some leftover pizza in the...fridge..." Chris suddenly trailed off, a slightly panicked expression on her face.

_Wait, do I have any leftover pizza? Actually, do I have any food **at all**?!_

"FRICK!" She launched herself off the floor and nearly ripped the bedroom door off of its hinges before remembering she had locked the accursed thing. From there she almost barreled into a rather startled looking St. Germain as she hurried to the front door, shouting "I forgot something, be back later-!"

"Yu-Yukine?!" St. Germain could only look on in shock as Chris ran out the door, only to return a few moments later to retrieve the wallet she had forgotten in her haste before slamming the door shut once more, leaving St. Germain utterly alone.

***

It wasn't until she had reached the local market that Chris realized she didn't know what the alchemist ate and that maybe, just _maybe_ she should have asked her to help with the grocery shopping.

Oops.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, chapter two! ...And not much progress being made, ahaha. But Chris can't hide in her room indefinitely, right? Right???  
> (Oh, I was originally going to have Chris refer to Maria as 'octo-mom', but since she did call Maria by her name in AXZ I figured it'd make more sense for her to do so here.)


	3. Chapter 3

**3: Revelation**

A couple of weeks had elapsed since St. Germain had taken up residence with Yukine. Two weeks of...relative silence. Most of it was a result of Yukine being preoccupied with school and training, but the times she was home she barely spoke with St. Germain. Mainly it was a customary greeting and nothing more. If St. Germain tried to ask even the simple question of 'how was your day?', Yukine would 'suddenly remember' something she needed to do and disappear into her room or abruptly leave the apartment. It was quite vexing, honestly. Not that she could really blame Yukine for acting the way she did. But on a few occasions she had caught the younger girl watching her curiously, so why did she avoid her so much?

_I don't really understand that girl..._

Sighing, she rifled through a leather bag she had in her possession, pulling out a small collection of liquid-filled violet vials. They were useless to her now, but perhaps they could be of interest to S.O.N.G.'s resident scientist. Honestly she was looking for an excuse to leave the apartment and see other people. It was lonely being around only one person who acted like they didn't care about you in the slightest. Grabbing the I.D. she had been issued earlier in the week and ensuring the apartment was locked up tight, St. Germain began her trek to headquarters.

***

"Pardon my intrusion, but I...huh?!" The automatic doors swished shut behind St. Germain, who looked on in shock at what appeared to be a tiny blonde braid flailing furiously in Cagliostro's grasp. Seriously, that was all she could see of what had to be the poor homunculus. Prelati stood a short distance away, poised to throw a liquid-filled flask at Cagliostro's head. "What in the world is going on here?!"

"Ooh, St. Germain~!" Cagliostro abruptly released the tiny homunculus and spun around, tightly hugging St. Germain before planting a firm kiss on her cheek. "I was just giving that little cutie a hug, nothing wrong with that, riiight?"

"YOU NEARLY SMOTHERED HER, YOU IDIOT!"

"But I didn't, so it's all good!"

"Listen here, you-!"

St. Germain sighed. She had gotten used to Prelati and Cagliostro bickering on a fairly regular basis and would normally ignore them until they had gotten it out of their systems, but she honestly had neither the time nor patience to deal with their nonsense. "Cagliostro. Prelati. Cease and desist! You're frightening poor Ca- Elfnein! You're frightening Elfnein." St. Germain inwardly berated herself for inadvertently starting to refer to Elfnein by the wrong name. Granted, the child -was- occupying Carol's body, but still. She should have been more careful! Glancing in Elfnein's direction to see if she had noticed her slip-up, she saw her peeking out from behind Prelati's back, quite obviously shaken by Cagliostro's actions. _I guess she didn't notice. Thank goodness._

"Sowwy, St. Germain..." Cagliostro stared down at the floor with a pretty little pout on her face.

_I seriously doubt she actually is sorry..._ "Kindly refrain from doing that again in the future. Elfnein, are you quite alright?"

"Y-yes..." She slipped out from behind Prelati and hugged St. Germain, burying her face into her side momentarily before looking up. "Um, if I may ask...Why are you here? I-I mean not that you're not welcome or anything..." she trailed off, evidently worried that she may have said something to upset the elder alchemist.

"Here." St. Germain pulled out the leather pouch, gently placing it into Elfnein's hands. "I thought you might find these of interest and perhaps could find some use for them." Curious, Elfnein carefully opened the pouch and pulled out a few of the liquid-filled vials, her tiny face lighting up with delight.

"These are-!" For a moment she appeared to consider shattering one of them onto the floor, but quickly thought better of it. There was no telling where she would be teleported to, if even anywhere at all! "Th-thank you, St. Germain-san! I've been wanting to study these for some time!" St. Germain smiled as she watched Elfnein excitedly study the vials, but the smile soon vanished, replaced by a sad expression.

"Hmm? St. Germain? Is something wrong?"

"Ah? No, it's nothing..."

"Problems with that Chris girl?"

St. Germain sighed. Cagliostro was entirely too observant at times. "...Yes, I suppose you could say that. Yukine seems to be annoyed by my presence. I mean, she barely talks to me, barely even acknowledges my presence...What am I supposed to do?"

Cagliostro draped an arm across her shoulders, pulling her close. "Silly, just give her time! Remember it took time for you, me and 'Lati to get used to each other and interact, so it's gonna be the same for you and the little cutie...Hey, what's with that look?!"

"You say that, yet I distinctly recall you asking me if we had any 'heart-to-heart convos' before I even had the chance to try and get settled in at Yukine's!"

"I- I just got excited, alright?! 'Lati, stop laughing at me it's not that funny-!"

Prelati wiped a few stray tears from the corners of her eyes, trying to quell her amusement at St. Germain calling out Cagliostro on her idiocy. "Heh. But basically I have to agree with her on giving Yukine time. I know you're frustrated, but she's probably still trying to adjust to everything. Basically, I wouldn't worry about it too much."

"But..."

"I- I agree," Elfnein piped up from her work station. "Chris-san just needs some time. S-so please try not to worry..."

St. Germain sighed. "I'll try. However, I make no promises." Glancing down at her watch, she said "If you'll pardon me, I'd best return to the apartment. Cagliostro."

"Yeees~?"

"Do try to behave yourself, understood?"

"Okaaay..."

Quickly walking down the corridor, St. Germain thought about what the others had said. They had a valid point, but...

_But perhaps it would be for the best if I..._

***

"Yukine, may I ask you something? Would it be easier for you if I left?" Yukine's head snapped up from where she was working on some homework. "I mean, you seem annoyed by my being here, so perhaps it would be better for you if I just stayed over at the base...Yukine?"

The younger girl scowled at her and snapped "Why d'ya think I'm annoyed with you?! Seriously, why?!"

St. Germain recoiled at the sudden outburst. "Well, you barely ever speak to me and seem to avoid me, not to mention you seem rather irate at the moment..."

Yukine averted her eyes and mumbled "Sorry...didn't really mean to yell like that." She glanced back over at the older woman. "Or avoid ya, really. It's just, well...you're kinda intimidating."

St. Germain's eyes widened at the admission. "Intimidating? How so?"

"Well you're how many centuries old for crying out loud?! And I mean you probably were some high-falutin' noble's brat or something! Although I dunno why someone like that would've given a damn about ending oppression, now that I think about it."

"I suppose if I had been the child of a noble I wouldn't have cared. But I wasn't noble-born, rather I was quite the opposite." Yukine watched her with a confused expression, curious as to what she meant. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "You may not believe it, but...As a child, I was a slave."

Yukine stared at her, eyes wide with shock. "N-no way...you too...?" Realizing what she just said, she slapped her hands over her mouth, but it was too late.

_Too...?_ St. Germain could only stare in horror, hoping she had misheard. But judging by the panicked expression on Yukine's face, she hadn't. _No..._

_She's suffered that indignity as well!?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...the urge to add emoticons to Cagliostro's dialogue is real. Sheesh.


	4. Chapter 4

**4: Unexpected Emotions**

_Shit._

_Shit, shit, SHIT!_

_**Why did I tell her that?!** _

Chris threw a cautious look at the woman staring at her from across the table. She hadn't meant to reveal that painful aspect of her past, but it just came flying out after the shock of learning her ancestor had been a child slave! And apparently said ancestor was shocked to find out, as well. Chris had to fight back her rising panic, along with an urge to bolt. Neither would help her with the current situation. She needed to be strong. Strong! But it was difficult, honestly. Taking a deep breath and removing her hands from her mouth, she looked the older woman in the eyes, ready to say something, _anything,_ but...

"...Yukine?"

Chris' breath suddenly hitched as old memories came flooding back, and the next thing she knew tears were streaming unbidden down her cheeks. Rubbing furiously at her eyes, she tried to calm back down but failed miserably. _Dammit, why am I crying?! Stop it stop it STOP IT!_ She suddenly felt someone gently dabbing at the tears on her cheeks and opened her eyes a crack. St. Germain was leaning across the table with a handkerchief, trying to wipe away Chris' tears. Letting out an embarrassed snarl, she snatched the handkerchief out of the older woman's hand before abruptly turning her back to her and hurriedly wiping away her tears.

After several minutes, Chris was finally able to calm back down. She whipped back around, fully prepared to act as though that particular outburst of emotion had never happened. However, St. Germain had disappeared during that time. Quickly glancing around, she spied the older woman calmly walking out of the kitchen with two mugs filled with some sort of steaming liquid. St. Germain gently placed one of the mugs onto the table in front of Chris before sitting back down on the opposite side. Glancing down, she realized it was the herbal tea that the alchemist seated across from her was rather fond of.

Blowing on the tea a bit to cool it down some, Chris took a small sip. _Bitter._ Grimacing, she stubbornly started drinking the tea, not wanting to waste it after someone took the time and effort to make it for her. She had gotten roughly half of it down before St. Germain spoke.

"How are you feeling now, Yukine?"

Chris sniffled slightly before answering "A bit better...N-not that I was upset or anything! Don't get the wrong idea!"

"If you say so..." The alchemist fell silent, and after a few long moments Chris snapped.

"You're seriously not gonna say anything? Ask anything? I'm legit surprised you're not interrogating me right now!"

"First of all, Yukine, you said you weren't 'upset or anything' so I have no reason to comment or ask anything."

"Urk..."

"Secondly, I'm hurt that you think that I make it a habit to go prying into other people's business. Yes, I did go investigating your ancestry, but that was it. If I honestly wanted to go snooping into the details your past, I could easily do so with no need to interrogate you whatsoever!"

Chris turned away, feeling rather ashamed. She hadn't meant to snap like that, but it just seemed to be in her nature. Having a rather brash personality could come in handy at times, but this certainly wasn't one of them! "Sorry. I..."

"There's no need to apologize, Yukine. I may have been rather harsh just now, and for that I'm sorry. Admittedly, I am curious as to what all you've been through, but I shan't pry. If you want to talk about it, I'll be more than happy to listen. But **only** if you're comfortable doing so!"

Chris just stared at the older woman, unable to say anything. She felt oddly happy for the offer, but she honestly didn't know if she'd be comfortable talking about her past. "Maybe someday. Maybe. But definitely not right now."

"That's perfectly alright. But in the meantime I would appreciate it if you'd converse with me in general. It doesn't matter about what, it could be something as mundane as how your classes are going! And if you so desire, you can ask me whatever you'd like. It would only be fair, honestly. Is that alright?"

Chris couldn't help but chuckle. "Fine, fine...! But don't blame me if you get bored to tears! Believe it or not my life ain't a nonstop action movie, thank god." Gulping down the rest of the tea (which had gotten decidedly cold by that point) and letting out a rather unladylike belch, she headed into the kitchen yelling "I dunno 'bout you, but I'm hungry! Ya want spaghetti? You'd better 'cause that's what I'm making!"

"What is it with you and spaghetti, I wonder...?" St. Germain shook her head, a faint smile on her lips. She was glad to see Yukine in better spirits and more willing to talk. Her manners, however, left much to be desired. She'd have to have a talk with her about that eventually...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Not entirely happy with this chapter, honestly.  >~<;


	5. Chapter 5

True to her word, Yukine conversed with St. Germain more, describing her days at school and some of the training she and the other gear wielders were undergoing. However, she remained quiet in regards to her past and showed no inclination to ask St. Germain about hers. St. Germain decided it would be best not to press her on the subject, since she did appreciate Yukine talking with her and had no desire to potentially anger her into silence once more.

Yukine soon became busy with some rather intense training sessions her guardian had planned alongside Cagliostro while Elfnein and Prelati were busy making minor repairs and adjustments on everyone's gears. As such, she often came home late, tired, and rather sore. St. Germain made sure to keep the apartment immaculate and the fridge stocked so that Yukine would have at least a little less to worry about.

She soon became quite busy herself, as Elfnein had requested her assistance in repairing her new companions' gears. The tiny homunculus also seemed keen on figuring out a way to improve the gears, now that the Ignite module had be rendered useless. As such, she had borrowed Prelati's Lapis to study, in case she could potentially utilise it. St. Germain couldn't see how she could possibly use something that was now powerless, however.

Thinking about it, was still so strange. On that day, when the Americans had launched a nuclear missile, she and her companions had been fully prepared to die in order to protect everyone else. But instead of their lives being sacrificed to contain and dissipate the blast, something else had been taken away. The power of the Lapis Philosphorium, their ability to use alchemy, and their very immortality. It felt odd, being mortal once more and effectively powerless. Not that she was complaining. Although Cagliostro _had_ flown into a huge panic shortly afterwards, terrified that she was going to revert back to her original male form. Even Prelati had shown some concern (although, as she had put it, it 'would be vexing to re-adjust to a male form, basically.') Thankfully, it seemed that those two would remain female.

"St. Germain?" A tugging on her sleeve roused her from her thoughts. "Are you alright?"

"My apologies, I was thinking about something. Was there something you needed?"

Elfnein looked down at the floor, nervously shuffling her feet. "D-do you still have your gun? I'd...like to borrow it, if I may."

St. Germain cast Prelati a questioning look, but she simply shrugged her shoulders and resumed work on the gear pendant in front of her. "I do, actually. But what do you want it for?"

"Um, well, t-to run some expirements for starters, and, uh..." Elfnein trailed off, her face beginning to turn red.

"...Alright. I'll bring it over once we've finished our current task, okay?" Elfnein perked up at that and scampered back over to her work station, a huge grin adorning her face.

St. Germain smiled inwardly at Elnein's enthusiatic curiosity. _Perhaps she actually_ will _find a way to utilize the Lapis! But just what is she planning with my old weapon, I wonder..._


End file.
